


Two Halves of One Heart

by HongBining



Series: Welcome to Pledis Monthly [2]
Category: SEVENTEEN (Band)
Genre: Fluff, I'M JUNHAO TRASH, Implied Sexual Content, M/M, but not rlly cuz i didnt write it lmao, i love chinaline they're the bestest, shout out to wonwoo for having acute gastritis as inspiration, they get SPICY, this is really long but theres so much to them i couldn't help it
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-08-29
Updated: 2016-08-29
Packaged: 2018-08-11 19:27:33
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 11,053
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7904737
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/HongBining/pseuds/HongBining
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Wen Junhui and Xu Minghao are both editors for the magazine Pledis Monthly.  </p><p>What could possibly become of the two of them?</p>
            </blockquote>





	Two Halves of One Heart

**Author's Note:**

> The Junhao Spin-Off of From Late to Fate! (but if you haven't read that yet it's totally fine this story will still make sense lol)
> 
> Title is from the song For Him by Troye Sivan!

It all started four years ago, when Junhui was hired as Pledis Monthly’s travel column copy editor.

 

* * *

 

Junhui is in the break room, pouring himself a cup of coffee when he hears someone clear their throat behind him.

 

Disturbed by the sudden ripple in the break room’s ocean of silence, he sharply turns around to find Xu Minghao standing behind him.

 

Xu Minghao was not just _any_ Pledis Month employee. No, this man was Pledis Monthly’s _top managing editor._

 

Everyone recognized him for his, simply put, _magnificent_ abilities as an editor. Because of this, the entire company knew who he was, from his face to his name.

 

He was only in his second year working for the company, but already received a promotion from copy editor to managing editor, and there was no doubt he would eventually rise to the highest ranking as Pledis Monthly’s editor in chief.

 

And yet here he was, a seemingly ordinary guy, facing Junhui dressed in a work uniform of a sweater and jeans (the polar opposite of Junhui’s button up shirt and tie with black pants ensemble).

 

It wasn't a look Junhui would personally go for, but for Minghao, he wore it extremely well. The sweater was slightly fitted, showing his figure, but not too fitted that it was unflattering.

 

“May I help you?” Junhui asks, raising an eyebrow.

 

He's momentarily confused. It's only his _fifth_ day on the job, he didn't think he'd be approached by anyone so important so soon.

 

Minghao shakes his head no, and reaches behind Junhui to grab a cup of his own. Junhui steps aside so Minghao can reach the coffee pot.

 

As he's pouring, Minghao looks up at Junhui and initiates their first conversation.

 

“You're the new intern guy, right?”

 

Junhui, who was taking a sip of his beverage, almost spits it out (which would've made for quality comedic timing) but instead he swallows it, despite the fact that it's as hot as lava.

 

He isn't sure what to say. Minghao is awaiting a response.

 

“No, actually,” Junhui says assuredly, after a long period of silence. “My name is Wen Junhui. I'm the newest copy editor for the travel column. Hired five days ago.”

 

He sips his coffee again (it's less hot this time), as congratulatory sip to himself for standing his ground.

 

Mid sip, Junhui realizes that he's forgotten creamer and sugar, but it's out of arm’s reach atop the table across from them.

 

He would leave his current spot to retrieve some, but he figures it would be rude of him to abandon Minghao so suddenly, even though he just delivered a massive blow to his ego.

 

Minghao’s eyes widen in surprise, partly because of his mistake and partly because he wasn't expecting the new employee to be Chinese.

 

His Mandarin was starting to get rusty; maybe he could converse on the daily with this Junhui guy.

 

Or what if he didn't speak Mandarin and spoke Cantonese? That would only make matters more awkward for the two of them.

 

That aside, Minghao had to address the current predicament facing him.

 

“Oh no! I'm so sorry!” he cries. “You just look really young, I thought the new copy editor would be someone older!”

 

That was another thing. He didn't expect the new employee to be Chinese, _or_ have one of the youngest looking faces he's ever seen on a person who works as a copy editor.

 

Junhui grins at him. It's a bit awkward for him to be called ‘young’ by someone who he knows is actually a year younger.

 

He opts out of sharing this at the moment, since he doesn't want to be in this conversation any longer and he just wants to get back to work.

 

“Xu Minghao. I've heard about you throughout the office. Congrats on your success. It was lovely meeting you,” Junhui bows slightly, and waves goodbye as he saunters out of the break room and back to his cubicle.

 

From the door, he calls, “See you around!” and finally disappears from sight.

 

Minghao watches Junhui make his dramatic exit, and once he's alone he sighs, slapping his forehead.

 

Minghao lets out a disgruntled sigh. _Damn it! If I'm ever going to be editor in chief one day, the least I could do is know everyone's name!_

 

As he leaves the break room, he can't help but admire the way Junhui stood up for himself, with the kind of confidence not too many people seem to have these days.

 

Not to mention the way Junhui’s dress pants hug his legs _oh_ so nicely.

 

* * *

 

Junhui has been at Pledis Monthly for half a year now. He loves it; editing the travel column is such a pleasure.

 

Although he himself isn't doing the traveling, he figures reading about other people’s experiences traveling is just as good.

 

Since their first meeting in the break room, he sees daily Minghao throughout the office, mostly when Minghao checks up on him at his desk to view his progress. They make small talk, with Minghao cracking the occasional joke and they would share a laugh.

 

It's a Tuesday morning, and Junhui has already completed his edits for the day.

 

“All done!” Junhui announces cheerfully, holding up his freshly edited papers to Minghao, decorated with a plethora of red markings.

 

Minghao looks down at the stack of documents, nodding his head slightly as he flicks through them, and looks at Junhui.

 

“Wow, you work fast!” Minghao says. “Didn't I just give you these this morning?”

 

Junhui nods. “You bet!” He smiles at Minghao, giving him a thumbs up.

 

Impressive was an understatement when it came to Junhui. If you gave him an entire issue of Pledis Monthly to edit at 8am and told him to have it done by noon, he'd hand it in by 11am accompanied by some ‘extra work’ he brought upon himself.

 

Last month, the entire editing department was on the verge of disaster. Three copy editors were out sick and two were on their vacation, and Junhui stepped in and did all of it on top of his own work, before Minghao could even lift a finger.

 

“Anything else I can do?” Junhui inquires.

 

Minghao glances up at the office clock. It was only 10:10 in the morning, and Junhui already finished 6 hours worth of work in a matter of two hours.

 

“Well, I guess I'll have to find something for you to do, Junhui,” he tells him. “So for now, I guess you can go on break.”

 

Junhui’s face falls. “Oh, ok,” he responds, slumping in his chair. He picks up a scrambled rubik’s cube laying on his desk.

 

Contrary to popular belief, Junhui actually _enjoys_ working. He loves the sense of accomplishment he gets completing his assignments in record time. It was a shame he'd be left with nothing for the rest of the day.

 

As he's walking away, Minghao remembers the newest issue of Pledis Monthly that he needs to edit and finalize before the end of the week.

 

He could always use an extra set of eyes, right?

 

Minghao returns to Junhui’s cubicle, peeking his head over the partition panel such that only the top half of his head can be seen.

 

He raps the side of the panel with his fist, startling an unsuspecting Junhui trying to finish the white side of the cube.

 

“Jeez! You scared me!” Junhui playfully hits the top of Minghao’s head with his free hand.

 

“OW!” Minghao exclaims. “Now I know not to startle you anymore.” He winces at the pain and hears Junhui chuckle from his chair.

 

The pain begins to alleviate as Minghao recalls his original intention for returning to Junhui.

 

“Look, I need your help with something. Come with me.” Minghao gestures for Junhui to follow him.

 

Surprised, Junhui obliges, puts the Rubik's cube down, and walks with Minghao to his office.

 

* * *

 

“I think this should centered a little more,” Junhui says as points out a huge title in bold, black print headlining the fashion section of the magazine.

 

Minghao lifts the page, squinting a little, and nods in agreement.

 

“You're right. It looks like it's a bit too much to the left.” Minghao picks up his red pen, circling it and scrawling a little note down on the side.

 

They're sitting together in Minghao’s office, which is slightly smaller compared to the editor in chief office located right next door.

 

He has a fairly large desk, though that's really all there is to the room, complete with his own cushioned armchair on his side of the desk and two foldable ones on the other.

 

The walls around it have shelves attached to them, occupied by some books and some succulents Minghao somehow imported from China.

 

There was also an empty photo frame on one of the shelves; Junhui notices but decides not to ask why.

 

The pages of Pledis Monthly’s upcoming issue are scattered across the length of the desk.

 

Minghao and Junhui are hovering above them, each with red pens in hand ready to create markings wherever necessary.

 

It's almost 6pm, the end of the workday. Junhui begins to organize them into piles of ‘edited’ and ‘unedited.’ Minghao helps him, and together they nearly arrange the papers into two manila folders with their respective labels.

 

The papers are equally distributed for the most part, but Minghao is satisfied knowing the ‘edited’ pile has approximately three pages more than the ‘unedited.’

 

Once they're finished and making their way out of the office, Junhui looks at Minghao with a disappointed expression on his face.

 

“I feel like I could've gotten more pages out of the way if I didn't nitpick every single detail,” he says as his shoulders fall.

 

Minghao reaches out and awkwardly places a hand on Junhui’s shoulder in attempt to comfort him.

 

They haven't been alone to speak one another ever since the mistaken intern conversation.

 

But now, it was only them, and Minghao had to find some way to console the shockingly vulnerable Junhui slumped before him.

 

He decides now would be a good time to break out the Mandarin.

 

“That's alright,” he tries, and glimpses at Junhui’s face, which now has a shocked expression from the change in language.

 

Junhui takes a moment to formulate a response. He hasn't had an opportunity to speak Mandarin in ages.

 

They'd been so occupied in their work for their Korea-based magazine, they'd practically forgotten their own China-based roots.

 

“No, it's not,” he finally replies, feeling the words flow naturally from his mouth. “I wanted to get everything done.”

 

Junhui is exhausted and overwhelmed. “I feel like no one’s noticed me,” he continues.  “I just want to impress everyone and prove my skills as copy editor.”

 

Minghao, who isn't sure what to say, pulls Junhui into his arms and holds him in an embrace so that Junhui’s head is resting on Minghao’s shoulder. The sudden intimacy is a surprise, but oddly enough, Junhui doesn't seem to mind.

 

“Junhui,” Minghao says, looking down on his tousled blonde hair. “In your six months working here, I doubt they couldn't have hired a better copy editor than you.”

 

Junhui slowly unfolds himself from Minghao’s gentle embrace, and stands in front of him, their eyes meeting one another's.

 

Minghao grins. Junhui stands up a little, and runs a hand through his hair.

 

“You really think so?”

 

“Oh please. From the things I’ve seen you do, I _know_ so.”

 

* * *

 

A few more months pass. Junhui hits his first year at Pledis Monthly and Minghao couldn't be more proud.

 

The two have grown closer. Junhui finds himself in Minghao’s office for the duration of their work days, where they've developed the ability to talk and edit and the same time.

 

They spend time reminiscing over life back in China, and talk about missing their families and “real, quality Chinese food, not the imposter kind Seoul has,” as Minghao had said, making Junhui laugh.

 

Out of all the “real, quality, Chinese foods” Seoul lacks, Junhui says he misses the mooncakes from his local bakery in Shenzhen the most.

 

“Man, those were the best,” he sighs, as he's talking to Minghao one day during their lunch break. “Especially the ones filled with the jinmen danhuang.”

 

Minghao stops chewing his noodles for a moment.

 

“Oh yeah! The egg yolk filling! Those are delicious!”

 

“I know right! It's the best! I miss it so much.”

 

* * *

 

These days, Junhui and Minghao are the editing dream team.

 

Together, they sort through the paper drafts of Pledis Monthly and report back to the publishers on time with a finalized issue in hand.

 

Or at least, that's what happens some of the time.

 

Most of the time, Junhui and Minghao are running through the office, trying to contact _specific_ people in _specific_ departments who need to make _specific_ changes to their sections of the magazine to ensure that it's absolutely _perfect_.

 

Unfortunately for them, most of their coworkers were atrocious when it came to deadlines.

 

A lot of them, _way_ too many of them, had tendency to hand their drafts in at the very last second.

 

“Hao! Did we contact the head of the writing department yet? We need that food column in right now!” Junhui calls from his new cubicle, situated directly outside Minghao’s office. He's frantically sorting through pages on his desk.

 

The final draft of the October Pledis Monthly issue needs to be submitted for printing by 4:30pm, and it’s currently 3:52pm.

 

Junhui has one half of it on his desk. The other half is spread out on Minghao’s desk.

 

“No!” Minghao shouts in response. “He hasn't responded! This column has so many grammar errors, and _he's_ the one with the original file on his computer, the least he could do is get back to us and change it himself!”

 

They're screaming at each other from across their respective workspaces in Mandarin. At first, the sudden change in language startled their fellow coworkers, but it's become something that takes place so frequently nowadays that no one cares to bat an eyelash at it.

 

Minghao is frazzled.

 

_God, this entire office is filled with imbeciles!_

 

If everyone had handed their columns in on time, then him and Junhui wouldn't be in this mess, trying to get everything sorted out less than an hour before everything was due to the publishers.

 

On the bright side, there were barely any errors.

 

On the downside, no one from the writing department cared enough to fix them.

 

As much as the two of them were capable of changing it themselves, they didn't want to change anything too major on accident and infuriate the writers.

 

However, desperate times call for desperate measures.

 

“Jun!” Minghao calls out.

 

Junhui shoots out of his chair and makes his way to Minghao’s office, who has planted himself in the armchair behind his desk on a laptop stacked on piles of the draft papers.

 

He rushes in, and begins to organize the papers, sorting them into neat piles based on section (Travel, Romance & Dating, Food) and scurries behind the desk to stand behind Minghao, who is overcome by stress.

 

“This one damn column!” Minghao wails. He turns to Junhui and lifts up the paper with the flawed column to his face, as if that'll help the errors magically disappear. “They need to fire some of these dim witted writers who can't seem to do anything!”

 

Minghao angrily slams the paper back onto his desk, crumpling it into a ball. He cradles his face in both hands, and wants to hold back tears, but he's so frustrated right now that the waterworks begin to flow ever so subtly.

 

Junhui notices, and reaches for a tissue on the corner of Minghao’s desk. He forces him to sit up by lightly pushing his shoulder so he can dry off his eyes.

 

“Hey. Minghao,” Junhui whispers calmly. He kneels down as he begins gently pressing the tissue on Minghao’s face.

 

Minghao lets him do so, but once he's done he continues to sob quietly, putting his face in his hands again.

 

Junhui has never seen Minghao like this before. It wasn't helping that the time frame they had was getting narrower and narrower, so one of them had to think of something.

 

“Hao,” Junhui attempts once more. “You can get through this. It's just one column. I know you. You can figure something out.”

 

Junhui stands up to toss away the tear soaked tissue. He leans on the side of Minghao’s desk, stroking his back comfortingly until the sobbing ceases and he's fully calmed down.

 

Minghao rotates his chair so it's facing his laptop. He gingerly unfolds the column he crushed, and begins to flatten it out so it’s laying out on his desk.

 

He begins to furrow his eyebrows, glimpsing up at the ceiling as Junhui gazes down at him, anticipating an idea to come out of Minghao at any second.

 

The clock strikes 4:00pm. A half hour left.

 

Finally, Minghao takes a deep breath and exhales. He now has a look of determination on his face, and he looks to Junhui with a glimmer in his eyes.

 

“Jun. I can type about 76 words per minute. How about you?”

 

Junhui smiles. “Funny you say that, Hao, because I can do 77 words, so I win,” he gloats.

 

Minghao smirks. “Great. While I put the pages together, you can type out the unfinished column and correct all the mistakes, Mr. Speed Racer,” he says, nudging Junhui’s side with his elbow.

 

He doesn't give Junhui much of a choice as he stands up and pushes him into the armchair, setting the laptop in front of him.

 

Minghao sits on the folding chairs opposite his desk as he organizes the pages together based on their numbers, and eventually it begins to look like a legitimate issue of Pledis Monthly.

 

Junhui’s typing is making rapid click sounds as his fingers come in contact with the keyboard. He finishes the final version version of the article, and urgently hands it to Minghao, who wastes no time sorting it in with the rest of the magazine.

 

They squeal with excitement upon finishing, and rush to the publishing department to hand the final draft in for printing.

 

At last, when it's handed in, they take the time to look at the clock, which reads 4:29pm.

 

Once they arrive back at Minghao’s office, they embrace, arms wrapped around one another in a tight hug and they're jumping up and down, overcome with relief and happiness.

 

They eventually untangle themselves from one another, and their eyes meet as a smile spreads on each of their faces.

 

“Xu Minghao! I knew you could do it” Junhui beams, excitedly shaking the other's shoulders.

 

Minghao is still smiling from ear to ear. “I couldn't have done it without you, Wen Junhui!” he happily shouts back.

 

The room suddenly grows silent.

 

“I couldn't have done it without you, Wen Junhui,” Minghao repeats, a more hushed tone to his voice.

 

They're standing facing one another, and Junhui slowly begins to lean in. Minghao instinctively does the same, but soon enough the banging sound of a door swinging open interrupts.

 

They turn around to see the publisher standing in the door frame. Minghao jumps and faces him, bowing once they make eye contact.

 

“You did an excellent job with this issue. I flipped through it.” the publisher states. “I'm quite impressed. But I heard there were some--complications.”

 

Minghao looks over at Junhui, who makes an I mean I guess we should tell him face.

 

“Well, you see sir, we had some issues with the writing department,” Minghao explains. “They don't hand in their drafts on time, so we,” he pauses, waving his finger back and forth between him and Junhui, “don't have the allotted time frame we need to edit.”

 

The publisher has his hand resting underneath his chin. He stands in deep thought for a moment, and finally looks up at Minghao.

 

“Well, I must say, the two of you handled it with an excellent sense of professionalism,” the publisher says. Minghao turns to Junhui with a thumbs up, and Junhui nods back.

 

“I'll put a word in with the CEO, and let him know about the writing department,” the publisher decides. He bows to Minghao and Junhui, finally exiting the office.

 

The two look at each other and laugh.

 

“Wanna go to the break room for some celebratory coffee?” Junhui suggests.

 

Minghao nods, leading the way to the door.

 

“Sure,” he responds. “You have to make mine for me, though. I'm so tired I can barely make the walk to the break room.”

 

Junhui rolls his eyes. “You lazy oaf,” he teases, lightly shoving Minghao, who just chuckles in response.

 

Despite Minghao’s exhaustion, they walk to the break room together anyway,

 

Upon approaching the coffee station, Junhui takes two cups, holding one up in front of Minghao.

 

“Two sugars, dash of creamer for you, your highness?” Junhui jests, doing a pretend curtsy.

 

“You know me so well, my liege,” Minghao jeers.

 

* * *

 

“Happy Holidays, Jun!”

 

Minghao hovers over Junhui’s cubicle, a shiny wrapped box with a giant bow in hand.

 

The red paper on the box crinkles as Junhui takes the parcel from him, eyes widened in disbelief.

 

“Oh my goodness, what is this? You didn't have to get me anything,” he insists. “I thought we were just doing an office Secret Santa and leaving it at that.”

 

He fondles the box before placing it on top of his desk, smoothing out the wrinkles in the paper.

 

Much nicer already than the $15 Amazon gift Junhui anonymously received.

 

Regret washed over him immediately when he’d opened it, knowing he'd spent most of his month’s salary on a nice cashmere sweater for the person he'd gotten.

 

“They better treasure that sweater like it’s the last article of clothing they'll ever lay their hands on,” he’d sneered to Minghao the other day, who was sat across from him in the break room.

 

But now Minghao is standing above him, resting his head on top of the cubicle edge.

 

He nods towards the present on Junhui’s lap.

 

“Open it,” he says.

 

Junhui begins to unravel the bow, setting the ribbon aside as he starts removing the paper.

 

Minghao stands up straighter and begins to lean against the panel, hoping his weight won't cause it to fall over.

 

Finally, the paper is removed to reveal a shiny tin box, adorned with Mandarin characters that read _Shenzhen Bakery._

 

Junhui gasps. “Minghao!” he shrieks. “Is this what I think it is?”

 

Minghao smiles. Junhui is still awestruck as he removes the lid, which reveals a dozen neatly laid out mooncakes.

 

The same exact ones Junhui remembers from his days back in Shenzhen.

 

“How did you-” Junhui breathes, picking one out of the box and tearing a piece off. It's still steaming, and he takes a bite, letting out a sigh of content.

 

“These are incredible,” he says dreamily. “Just as delicious as they used to be.”

 

He turns his head towards Minghao, who starts giggling.

 

“There's no way these are from here,” Junhui laughs. “Did you have to sell your soul to the devil or something, Hao?”

 

Minghao’s eyes dart to the right. “Well,” he begins, “not exactly.” He pauses for a moment to ponder.

 

“The idea came to me that time you told me how much you missed these,” Minghao says, gesturing towards the mooncakes.

 

“I had to scour the Internet to find Shenzen Bakery online, and when I did I sent them an email asking if they remembered a certain Wen Junhui who used to enjoy their mooncakes,” he continues, reaching down to ruffle Junhui’s hair.

 

Junhui blushes. He takes another bite. “And then what?” he asks, mouth full of pastry.

 

“They agreed to send me a dozen before the holidays came around!” Minghao finishes, throwing his hands up in the air. “They came in the post to my apartment about three days ago.”

 

“Then how did you get them-like this?” Junhui points out the steam coming out of the mooncake as he tears another piece off, offering it to Minghao.

 

“I heated them up in my oven before coming here this morning,” Minghao responds, taking the morsel Junhui holds up to him and putting it in his mouth.

 

It all comes together so perfectly. The texture of the cake, paired with egg yolk filling is divine, and he immediately understands why Junhui loves these so much.

 

Junhui smiles at the sight of Minghao taking pleasure in his mooncake bite. He takes a full one out of the box, handing it over to him. Minghao gratefully accepts.

 

“I bet these taste so much better when they're fresh out of the oven, though,” Minghao observes, rotating the pastry in his hand, analyzing it.

 

He feels a hand reach up to gently caress his face, and he realizes it’s Junhui, who’s stood up from his chair.

 

“Hao, these are perfect,” he soothes. Junhui’s eyes are starting to tear up.

 

“This is the nicest thing someone has ever done for me. Thank you so much.”

 

Minghao smiles down at his friend.

 

“Only the best for you, Jun.”

 

* * *

 

“Aw, man.”

 

It's raining cats and dogs outside. Junhui forgot his umbrella at home, and this meant he would have to trudge back five blocks, sopping wet.

 

The rain around the Pledis Monthly office was never this torrential. Usually it was a light drizzle.

 

Junhui could do light drizzles.

 

Not this.

 

Minghao steps out of his office, closing the door behind him and takes out his key to lock it.

 

He sees Junhui, staring forlornly out the window as the rain splashed against the glass paneling.

 

Minghao approaches him, planting himself by his side.

 

Junhui acknowledges him by turning in his direction with a slight nod of his head.

 

“Hao,” he whines, “what do I do?”

 

Minghao wraps his arm around Junhui’s shoulders.

 

“Let me drive you home, Jun,” he suggests.

 

Normally, Jun wouldn't accept. In fact, he _never_ did, regardless of how many times Minghao would offer.

 

Minghao drives a black sedan to work every day that he parks outside the Pledis Monthly office. He tells Junhui that he's had it ever since his university days, and it hasn't failed him since.

 

“Okay,” Junhui complies.

 

They make their way outside, and are momentarily battered by the rainfall as they sprint towards Minghao’s car.

 

Junhui frantically grabs the door handle as he flies into the passenger seat. Minghao isn't far behind, as he sinks into the driver side with a sigh of relief.

 

“Make the first left here, keep going straight until you see Kyeom Avenue, and it's the first apartment complex two buildings down,” Junhui instructs.

 

“Roger that,” Minghao replies, starting up the car.

 

It's easily a five minute ride, but from the driver’s seat Minghao can see Junhui beginning to doze off, and he eventually hears snoring.

 

He turns into Kyeom Avenue when he suddenly hears Junhui begin mumbling incoherently.

 

Minghao pulls up in front of the apartment complex, barely missing the curb as he shifts the gears of his car to park.

 

He unbuckles and leans over to look at Junhui, who’s completely knocked out in the seat with his head drooping towards Minghao.

 

“Hey, all you people,” he grumbles sleepily.

 

Minghao is surprised; all this time he's known Junhui and it never occurred to him he'd be a sleep talker.

 

Minghao leans closer, waiting with bated breath for this important announcement Sleeping Junhui had to make.

 

“Xu Minghao,” Junhui mumbles, “is the bestest person in the whole wide world.”

 

He yawns loudly, stretching his arms out, almost hitting Minghao in the face. He gently swats his hands out of the way, and decides to let his friend sleep a little longer before forcing him out of his car and commanding he go up to his apartment.

 

In the meantime, he admires how adorable Junhui looks as he's sleeping. His mouth is slightly open, and he has both eyebrows raised. It's so comical, and Minghao is tempted to take a picture of him.

 

Junhui make a noise as if he's about to say something else.

 

“Hey, you,” he says, throwing his hand in the air. “Do you think Xu Minghao knows how great of a person he is? No, wait,” Sleeping Junhui stops himself.

 

He proceeds. “Do you think he knows how I think how great of a person he is?”

 

Minghao silently chuckles to himself.

 

“Oh, believe me. He certainly does,” he responds, gazing at his oh-so dorky and sleepy friend as the rain continues to pour outside.

 

* * *

 

It's a late April afternoon. Everyone at Pledis Monthly is in good spirits. The magazine is consistent with its sales and the worker productivity from all departments is at an all time high.

 

It probably had to do with the changes made in staff. A few people who were involved with the final draft fiasco that made Minghao almost lose his mind were laid off, and replaced with fresh, eager, hardworking individuals.

 

However, there's one staff writer who Junhui can't seem to meet eye to eye with.

 

Boo Seungkwan, the romance and dating column writer, is far too eager for Junhui’s liking.

 

He's nice, Junhui knows he's nice, but he’s the only person he's ever met in his life with such an absurd obsession with office romances.

 

He always makes it a point to acknowledge Junhui and Minghao’s togetherness all the time.

 

“Are you dating the managing editor?” he’d asked him one day, while Junhui was trying to mix his coffee as well as Minghao’s. He'd have to deliver it to him, since it was one of those days where Minghao didn't have time to leave his office and he was swamped with endless paperwork.

 

“ _Excuse me?_ ” Junhui utters. He shoots Seungkwan a death glare. Some nerve this new guy had.

 

“Oh you know, you two are just attached at the hip, it's adorable!” Seungkwan sings as he leans towards Junhui.

 

He lightly pushes Seungkwan away from him, taking a step back.

 

“No. We are not dating,” Junhui finally answers through gritted teeth as he forcefully snaps the coffee caps on the cups.

 

He snatches them off the table, managing a plastered smile at Seungkwan as he leaves.

 

Junhui was in disbelief. How dare someone ask such an irrational thing? He was fuming.

 

Whether or not he and Minghao were even dating, given the unlikely chance they ever would, no one had a right to his business.

 

He goes to Minghao’s office anyway, delivering his coffee to him as if his encounter with Seungkwan hadn't phased him.

 

It's later that day, when Junhui is packing up his belongings to go home. He realizes that deep down inside him, it’s not the fact that Seungkwan had asked such a specific and personal question that made him upset.

 

It's the fact that the answer to Seungkwan’s specific and personal question had been no.

 

* * *

 

The CEO barges into Minghao’s office late one Friday afternoon. The day was winding down, and Minghao was getting ready to go home last after everyone else already cleared out.

 

It was an average work day. Minghao and Junhui did their edits together as usual, with the typical banter and Junhui poking fun at the word choices of the writers.

 

He invites the CEO to sit down in one of the folded armchairs, as he closes his laptop and places it into his bag.

 

“You've been an excellent, consistent, magnificent editor in your time here,” says the CEO.

 

Minghao sits up straight in his armchair. What the CEO says next could go in two possible directions, and Minghao is doing a silent prayer in his head to anyone higher powers listening that it goes in his favor.

 

“Which is why,” starts the CEO. Minghao feels himself inhale sharply.

 

“…we’d like to promote you to editor in chief of Pledis Monthly,” he finishes, giving Minghao a grin.

 

Minghao’s hands go over his mouth. He couldn't believe it. He was being promoted, to such a prestigious title, a title he'd put his blood, sweat, and tears towards.

 

And now he finally has it. He wants to throw himself across his desk to hug the CEO, but that would be unprofessional.

 

The CEO stands up, adjusting his tie and pushing his glasses up.

 

“Well, that does mean your position will open up. Do you have anyone in mind who you'd want to take your former role?” he inquires.

 

Minghao’s lips curl up into a smile.

 

There's no doubt in his mind who he wants to become the newest managing editor.

 

“Wen Junhui,” he states. “I want him.”

 

The CEO nods firmly, whipping out a notepad and pen from his back pocket. Minghao sees him write out Junhui’s name in Hangul, Moon Junhwi, before putting the notepad away.

 

“Very well,” the CEO finishes. “I'll inform him of his new position via email this evening.”

 

Minghao bows, and the CEO bows back.

 

The CEO begins to leave, but stops at the doorway.

 

“You both start on Monday!” he calls, slamming the door behind him.

 

Minghao remains composed until he sees the CEO is out of his sight.

 

He breaks out into a celebratory dance and frantically reaches for his phone to call Junhui.

 

The phone dials as Minghao stands confidently in the center of his office, or should he say _Junhui’s_ office, knowing he’d be the first to deliver the wonderful news to the future managing editor of Pledis Monthly.

 

“Hello?” Junhui finally picks up. He sounds slightly frazzled, as if he'd just awoken from a nap.

 

Minghao’s smile is so big he feels like he could burst.

 

“YOU’LL NEVER BELIEVE WHAT JUST HAPPENED!”

 

* * *

 

Junhui can't believe it. He's reached the peak of his career, and he's certain that his new role as managing editor will be a life changing experience for him.

 

Not to mention all his time spent under the guidance of Minghao helped as a large contributor to his acquired expertise as an editor.

 

He's settled into Minghao’s old office. It'll take him time before he gets used to calling it his own.

 

Minghao has moved into the office meant for the editor in chief. It's the same as the managing editor’s office, only everything is _larger_. The chairs are larger, the desk is larger, the shelves are larger, et cetera.

 

Junhui notices that Minghao still keeps the empty photo frame on his desk.

 

One day while they're sorting through the first drafts of the July issue, he decides to ask him about it.

 

Minghao shrugs. “I've been meaning to put a photo in there,” he says plainly.

 

“Ah,” Junhui says, and resumes circling huge red circles over Seungkwan’s grammar errors.

 

* * *

 

It’s a Saturday afternoon when Minghao’s phone rings with an urgent call from Junhui.

 

He's just gotten back from a run when the phone rings.

 

Junhui never calls. Minghao gulps as he presses ‘answer.’

 

“Jun?”

 

Minghao hears muffled sobs from the other end.

 

“Jun,” he tries again, grabbing the phone with both hands.

 

The sobbing continues, only now it's louder and Minghao’s anxiety levels begin to rise.

 

“Junhui. Please say something,” he pleads.

 

He hears a sniffle, followed by a sharp inhale.

 

“My mother just called me from China,” Junhui says shakily. He pauses to sniffle again. Minghao stays quiet, waiting for him to continue.

 

“My brother is ill!” he cries. “He's in the hospital and they didn't think it would be serious, but the doctors aren't sure what it is, they thought it was just a stomach bug but now they're saying it might be gastritis or something, oh God, and she wants me to come home to be with him, and I don't know what to do, Hao, and I'm so worried--”

 

Junhui is sobbing much louder now. Minghao holds his hand to his forehead; he's not sure what to say to comfort him.

 

After a minute, Junhui simmers down and Minghao hears him sigh.

 

“I'm looking at air fares right now,” Junhui says. “If I pack now and make it to the airport in an hour, I can catch a flight to Shenzhen today.”

 

“I'm so conflicted, Hao. I don't want to miss work, but this is my family, and I want to be there so I’ll know he's okay.”

 

Junhui sighs again. “But work.”

 

Minghao hears the distress in Junhui’s voice. He knows how vital Junhui’s job is to him, especially now when he's assigned an even greater responsibility as managing editor.

 

But he's worked so hard these past three and a half years. He rarely took breaks, unless it was a mandatory vacation day, and Minghao felt obliged to give him permission to go back to China and see his family.

 

“Jun, I think you should go. It's your family. If I were you, I'd fly to China in a heartbeat. I'll cover you at work. You won’t need to worry about it,” reassures Minghao.

 

Junhui sniffs. “You're sure?”

 

Minghao nods, but stops when he realizes Junhui can't see him through the phone.

 

“I'm sure,” he confirms, grabbing his car keys and making his way to his front door. “Your main priority right now should be your brother.”

 

Junhui breathes a sigh of relief. “Hao, you're the best,” he tells him.

 

Minghao smiles. “I know.”

 

He tells Junhui over the phone to start packing, because he'll be at his apartment to take him to the airport in about fifteen minutes.

 

* * *

 

It's been the loneliest two weeks of Minghao’s life.

 

Editing by himself is such a bore without Junhui sitting by his side, cracking jokes or making fun of the writer’s columns.

 

He wants Junhui beside him, to get him through the days that aren't as laid back, the ones where work is piled high and Minghao can't see a way out for himself.

 

“We can do this Hao!” Junhui would shout. “If we just believe, we can do it!”

 

Today, he’s at his desk, and sets aside the papers for a moment so he can massage his temples.

 

Him and Junhui video chat for an hour at most every day. There was no set duration for their chats, and some days were shorter than others depending on their schedules.

 

Minghao had work, as usual, while Junhui was attending family events and seeing to his brother throughout the day.

 

“I miss you, Hao,” Junhui sighs one day. He was sprawled out on a sofa bed while Minghao was sitting in the break room for lunch.

 

“I made your coffee on instinct today along with mine,” Minghao had told him. “You know how many strange looks I got this morning because I was rushing to carry two coffees to my office at the same time?”

 

Junhui chuckled, and knew that was Minghao’s way of saying that he misses him too.

 

Suddenly, Minghao’s phone dings with a Kakao notification. He lazily reaches his hand over to grab it, and he sees it’s a message from Junhui.

 

Junnie :p <1:47 pm>

 

_lil bro is doing SOSOSOSO much better!! all he needs is medicine and rest :-)_

 

Minghao reads the message and smiles. If Junhui’s little brother was finally recovering, this had to mean he would be on his way home soon.

 

HaoHao <1:49 pm>

 

_omg yay!! that's such a relief. how's your family doing?_

 

Junnie :p <1:52 pm>

 

_it's like a huge burden was lifted off our shoulders. we’re all so happy rn!_

 

Junnie :p <1:53 pm>

 

_btw, I visited shenzhen bakery!_

_they remember me! :D_

_and they also told me how polite and friendly u were through the email and how they'd happily send over more mooncakes to seoul!!_

_i told them yes pls!!_

 

HaoHao <1:54 pm>

 

_omg that’s amazing!_

_so... does that mean you’re coming home?_

 

Minghao feels his knuckles turn white as the grip on his phone grows tighter. It felt like Junhui was taking eons to respond to his one simple question.

 

His phone dings. Minghao scrambles to check Junhui’s message.

 

Junnie :p <2:08 pm>

 

_well …. i will, and i rlly want to, but there haven’t been any available flights to seoul :(_

_i‘ve been checking every day_

_china airports, amiright? :p_

_and i was just checking now too, on every website, and there’s nothing_

 

Junnie :p <2:09 pm>

_NOTHING, MINGHAO. NOTHING._

 

HaoHao <2:11 pm>

 

_ok…. :’(_

_i hope something comes up soon! ^_^_

_video chat later?_

 

Junnie :p <2:14 pm>

 

_maybe… need to help mom w/ dinner now i gtg too_

_ttyl haohao_

 

Minghao shuts his phone off, slouching in his armchair.

 

All he wants is for Junhui to come home.

 

* * *

 

It’s another Wednesday workday.

 

Unfortunately for Minghao, it’s another Wednesday workday without Junhui.

 

He keeps trying to distract himself from his ever increasing loneliness, from reading old magazine issues to giving a go at the Rubik’s cube, but nothing can fill the Junhui-sized emptiness that currently occupies his life.

 

Nothing can ever match up to Junhui. Optimistic, determined, hilarious, good natured Junhui. Seeing his face on a phone screen just wasn’t the same as seeing him in person.

 

Junhui falls asleep that afternoon while they’re on video chat. Minghao is left watching Junhui as he snores, and he could easily shout so that the noise wakes him up, but he decides to leave him be. Plus, he looks so peaceful.

 

Two minutes pass before Minghao decides that what he’s doing is super duper creepy, so he decides to hang up.

 

He really, really hopes that Junhui gets a plane ride back to Seoul as soon as possible.

 

* * *

 

It’s that same evening, right before Minghao falls asleep, that he has the revelation.

 

Minghao is in love with Junhui.

 

* * *

 

Once he’s gotten a hold on his feelings, Minghao isn’t sure what to do.

 

He _is_ in love with Junhui. He’s _been in love_ for the longest time, and it took being separated from him for _three_ weeks for him to finally acknowledge and accept it.

 

He’s in love with his smile, his laugh, the way he talks, how he playfully shoves Minghao when he teases him, how he’s become so important to him he can’t imagine life without him by his side.

 

 _Oh god, oh god, oh god._ Minghao’s mind feels like it’s been beaten with a whisk. He begins to lose sleep over the next couple of days.

 

How would this affect his friendship with Junhui? How could he confess to Junhui? Should he even confess to Junhui?

 

Minghao wasn’t good with emotions. He always needed Junhui to give him advice on how to cope with them.

 

Except this time, Junhui is the last person he wants to turn to.

 

He’d have to find someone else, before Junhui finds a plane back home, but where? And how?

 

Minghao is desperate. He spent the majority of the Thursday work day asking his fellow co workers what they would do if they were faced with a problem they couldn’t find a solution to.

 

He made sure to sound as general as possible, to ensure no one would pose any concerns.

 

It’s almost the end of the day, and he’s running low on morale and energy. No one has given him any insight.

 

Perhaps being too general wasn’t as good of a strategy as he thought.

 

“Read a book,” suggests Jeon Wonwoo, one of the magazine’s staff writers. He’s taken up Junhui’s old cubicle, and he’s situated in front of his computer with a game of solitaire.

 

“A book?” Minghao is baffled at this suggestion.

 

Wonwoo nods, pushing his glasses up with his fingertips. “I highly suggest the city library. You ought to find some kind of book that addresses--” he presses his lips together, figuring out what to say next.

 

“Whatever conflict is causing you discomfort,” Wonwoo finishes, offering a forced grin at Minghao.

 

It’s the only genuine advice he’s received all afternoon. He implores Wonwoo for the address, who recites it to him without looking up once from the monitor screen.

  
As Minghao copies it down, Wonwoo reminds him that it closes in approximately two hours at 8pm, “on the dot,” he’d specified.

 

Minghao gathers all his belongings and races out of the building. He has to leave _now._ Work could wait when an emotional crisis was at hand.

 

“Lee Seokmin!” he calls to his copy editor. “Cover for me while I’m gone!”

 

* * *

 

Minghao bursts through the doors of the city library.

 

He has an hour and fifty minutes to search for a book that will address the conflict causing him discomfort, as Wonwoo had put it.

 

He spies a man shelving books on a stepstool in his peripheral and makes his way towards him.

 

Minghao stands behind him and clears his throat.

 

“Excuse me. Do you know where I could find book about--” He isn’t sure how to put it into words.

 

“A book for self help!” he declares. That would do the trick.

 

The man shelves his last book and slowly turns around to face Minghao. Upon seeing each other, their eyes widen in shock.

 

“Xu Minghao!” the man exclaims at an inappropriately obnoxious volume, considering they were in a library.

 

“Kim Mingyu!” Minghao says back, lowering his voice slightly so neither of them would be told off.

 

Mingyu hops down from the stepstool and pulls Minghao in for a hug. Mingyu was Minghao’s first friend when he came to Korea years ago, but unfortunately they had to separate because of Minghao’s father’s job.

 

They’d communicate every now and then through email, but it had been a while since their last conversation.

 

Minghao had no idea he was this close to him in the library this whole time.

 

“What brings you here, Xu Minghao?” Mingyu questions.

 

Minghao furrows his eyebrow. “I’m looking for a book that can give me advice,” he says.

 

“Well, there’s a lot of advice books,” Mingyu chuckles. “More specific?”

 

Minghao goes quiet. His eyes dart to the ground.

 

Upon seeing his friend’s distraught face, Mingyu figured that Minghao’s problems couldn’t be solved with the ease of an author’s writing.

 

“Hey,” Mingyu says, putting his hand on Minghao’s shoulder. “What’s really the matter? C’mon, it’s almost the end of my shift anyway, come sit down.”

 

He gestures over to an empty table, where the two sit in chairs across from each other.

 

Minghao folds his arms on the tabletop and buries his head into them, letting out a prolonged groan.

 

“Mingyu,” he grumbles, “I think I’m in love with someone.” Another groan emits from Minghao.

 

“Oh, wow. That sure is something,” Mingyu responds.

 

Mingyu scratches his head in thought. “I mean, what kind of love? Is it love at first sight or is it the kind of love where you’re not sure if you do, so you’re willing to toy with it or something?” he suggests.

 

“It’s neither of those, Mingyu,” a disgruntled Minghao replies. He lifts his head up to look at his friend sitting across from him. “I’ve known him for almost four years now. We’re practically work best friends, but now that I think about it, I’ve barely seen him outside of work matters, but there’s just _something_ about him that has me with all these feelings for him, and I don’t know how to act on it.”

 

He takes a deep breath. “I’m just really scared, Mingyu,” he exhales.

 

“Well, work is a huge part of your life. You probably know this guy a lot more than you realize,” Mingyu offers. “Maybe he feels the same way about you.”

 

“But what if he doesn’t! He’s got so much going for him, when does he have time to have feelings for someone like me?” Minghao points out. “I haven’t seen him in weeks, he’s in China, and I don’t know when he’s coming back. I miss him so much, and I’m scared that I’ll start to treat him differently when he does return, because of all these damn feelings.”

 

He makes a gesture to his head. “I feel like I have no control over this.”

  
Mingyu nods. He’s taken on the role of Minghao’s therapist, and doesn’t seem to mind.

 

“Have you considered telling him when he comes home?” he inquires.

 

Minghao feels his heart sink. “No.”

 

“Well, do that!” Mingyu says. “You won’t have anything to worry about when it does. I mean, the worst thing he says is that he doesn’t reciprocate, but you’ll get it off your chest, right?”

 

“Easier said than done,” Minghao sighs. “I’m a coward.”

 

Mingyu leans across the table and takes Minghao’s shoulders in his hands, beginning to shake him.

“Listen to me! This isn’t the Xu Minghao I remember! I know you, you need to do this! You never know, maybe something good could come out of it! Or bad! But let’s stay on the positive side!” He offers a smile of reassurance.

 

Suddenly, a Kakao notification sounds on Minghao’s phone. He takes it out of his pocket.

 

He gulps. “This is him,” Minghao says, showing the screen to Mingyu.

 

Junnie :p <7:02 pm>

 

_great news! just booked a flight back to seoul!_

_it’s super last minute, it’s taking off tomorrow_

_so that means i’ll be home!_

 

“That’s wonderful!” Mingyu exclaims. He begins to stroke his chin, trying to come up with a solution.

 

Finally, his face lights up as if the greatest idea of all time just hit him.

 

“Offer to pick him up from the airport! You should tell him then! And what’s his name, Junhui? What a great name! I can see it now. Minghao and Junhui! The hottest new couple on the block!”

 

God, why was Mingyu so enthusiastic about all this? Minghao winces.

 

But he had a point. If Minghao was planning to go through with it, he should do it as soon as possible.

 

Minghao takes a deep breath, and types out his response.

 

HaoHao <7:05 pm>

 

_yay finally!!!_

_hey, let me know when you’re getting back, i can get you from the airport._

 

Junnie :p <7:11 pm>

 

_my flight leaves from SZX at around 1:50 in the afternoon. should be back around 6:20 pm ish at ICN._

_i mean i have to get my luggage first but anyways yeah_

_if u can pick me up, that would be awesome! :) thnx_

 

Mingyu pats him on the back. “So you’ve got it all figured out?”

 

“I guess, for the most part. I’ll pick him up, and I’ll tell him.”

 

“Solid plan,” Mingyu says, gripping Minghao’s shoulders. “This is a good thing. He deserves to know about your feelings.”

 

Minghao nods. “You’re right. It’s for the best.”

 

Once it’s all sorted out with Minghao’s problem, (more or less) the two sit at the table and catch up with one another. Mingyu mentions that he’s taken up photography, when Minghao remembers the opening up in the photo department.

 

“Hey, Mingyu,”he says. “Would you ever want to become a photographer for Pledis?”

 

“Um, maybe,” Mingyu ponders. “I mean I don’t normally photograph fashion models like you guys do, but I guess I could learn.”

 

Minghao chuckles. “How would you like to start in a month?”

 

Mingyu’s hands cover his mouth. “Really?” he shrieks. “Yes, I’ll take it!” He throws his arms around Minghao in an enthusiastic embrace.

 

That evening, Minghao sleeps easier knowing he’s got a plan to confess to Junhui, and a new Pledis Monthly employee coming to the office.

 

* * *

 

“Where is it?” Junhui mumbles to himself.

 

He’s been at the baggage carousel for the past fifteen minutes, and his luggage still wasn’t coming out.

 

Junhui couldn’t wait to be back. As much as he loves his hometown, he couldn’t stand being apart from his work for too long.

 

Or Minghao, for that matter.

 

Before he boarded his plane, Junhui snapped a picture of his boarding pass to Minghao so he’d know that he would arrive at the arrival terminal marked with the number 8.

 

The last bag comes out on the carousel, and it’s Junhui’s. He runs to get it, heaving it over to his side and letting it drop on the ground with a loud thump.

 

He lifts the handle, and lets it roll behind him as he finally makes his way to the exit doors.

 

* * *

 

Minghao pulls up along the curb for airport pick up, as Junhui had so diligently instructed him. There was a mess of cars ahead of him and behind him, and he so badly wanted for Junhui to come out as soon as possible.

 

There were so many crowds around this terminal, how could he possibly find Junhui?

 

He puts his car into park and calls him. It was hard to hear the dial tone even go off, considering there was so much honking.

 

“Hey!” Junhui picks up. “I had to get my luggage which took me sooo long. Are you here?”

 

Minghao leans back in his seat. “Yup,” he replies. “In front of terminal 8, as you said.”

 

“Okay! See you soon Hao!” chirps Junhui. Minghao hears him hang up.

 

In the back of his mind, he hears Mingyu’s advice echoing.

 

_“You need to do this. You never know.”_

 

He rolls down his window to see if he can spot Junhui among the sea of travellers waiting to be picked up.

 

At long last, there he is, rolling his luggage through the crowd making his way to Minghao’s car.

 

Minghao gets out and greets him with a hug, and he helps him lift his luggage into his trunk.

 

Afterwards, Junhui climbs into the passenger seat, and they’re off.

 

* * *

 

For the majority of the car ride, Minghao asks the questions and Junhui rattles off his responses. It turns out what his brother had was a case of acute gastritis and he would make an eventual recovery. But in the meantime, it was nice getting to reunite with his family after spending so long in Korea.

 

Minghao is currently drowning in mixed emotions. He’s elated to have Junhui by his side again, but is teeming with uneasiness at the thought of confessing to him.

 

At this point, Minghao really wants to do it. But Junhui is so immersed in his talking, there was no way he’d stop him just to say it now.

 

“I was talking about you to my family,” Junhui mentions. “How you basically took me under your wing and helped me become a better editor.”

 

Minghao feels his face turn red. “It was nothing, really,” he says sheepishly. “Plus, I wasn’t all that great to you. Remember when I thought you were just an intern?”

 

“How could I?” Junhui guffaws. “I was so offended. The last thing a new employee wants is to go unrecognized by his superiors.” He teasingly pokes Minghao’s shoulder, eliciting a grin.

 

“Yeah, that was my bad,” he chuckles.

 

* * *

 

Minghao turns into Kyeom Avenue, and parks outside Junhui’s apartment.

 

“Need help with your bag?” Minghao offers as Junhui steps out of his car.

 

He hears the trunk pop open, and the car lifts as the weight of Junhui’s luggage is removed.

 

Junhui hoists his bag onto the curb. He pokes his head into the open window.

 

“I’m good,” he says cheerily. “Thanks for picking me up, Hao. I really appreciate it.”

 

“See you tomorrow!” Junhui calls as he begins to roll his luggage towards the stairs of his building.

 

It’s at that very second that Minghao realizes what he’s forgotten. The whole purpose of him volunteering to drive Junhui home in the first place.

 

Minghao nearly forgets his intentions to confess.

 

* * *

 

Junhui has finally heaved his luggage up the small flight of stairs to his building when he hears a car door open and footsteps rapidly moving.

 

“Minghao?” he calls.

Minghao makes his way to the top step where Junhui is, standing in front of him. He has his head down, and gingerly reaches out to grab Junhui’s hands.

 

“Minghao?” Junhui tries again, his voice taut. “What are you doing? What’s going on?”  
  
“Junhui,” Minghao murmurs, “There’s something you need to know.”

 

He takes a sharp inhale. Minghao’s hands are shaking.

 

“It’s just--it’s just that I’ve been feeling these-- _feelings--_ and I can’t put it into words properly to you,” he stammers. “And I need to let you know, but I don’t know--how you’ll react to it.”

Junhui is stupefied. _What’s going on with Minghao?_

 _  
_ “Minghao, tell me,” Junhui insists. “If it’s causing you this much distress, just say it.”

 

Minghao lifts his head up to look at him. He takes a deep breath, and forces himself to make steady eye contact.

 

“Jun, I’ve known you for like, four years now, and I’m so grateful that we’ve become best friends, like at work and stuff, and you’re always there for me whenever I’m overwhelmed with projects, or need a break, or a stupid joke, or a coffee, and I don’t know what I’d do without you,” Minghao trembles, trying his best to look at Junhui.

 

“You’re just such a wonderful human being to be around all the time. And it sucks that it took you going away for me to--realize that,” he continues.

 

Junhui is trying to process all this in his head. He feels his face beginning to go red. Where was all this coming from?

 

“B-basically--basically what I’m trying to say is that--I think I really like you, like a _lot_ , and not in a friend way, but in like a _romantic_ way, you know?” Minghao sputters. He feels his voice begin to go wobbly, and lowers his head.

 

He glances up at Junhui and sees him with flushed cheeks and a giddy smile on his face.

 

“Are you saying you’re in love with me?” Junhui’s voice quavered.

 

Minghao nods, his eyes beginning to well up.

 

“Yes,” he confesses. “Yes, Jun, I am in love with you, and I guess I have been for a while, and you being away only amplified them.”

 

He bites his lip. “My feelings, I mean,” he concludes.

 

Junhui, who is too shocked for words, leans in so that their foreheads are touching.

 

“Minghao, I’ve been in love with you for so long,” he admits. “I’d practically given up. I didn’t think you felt the same way.”

 

Minghao’s eyes widen. Was this really happening?

 

Here they both were on Junhui’s apartment stairwell, both immersed in emotions and confessions for one another.

 

“I’m in love with you too, Minghao. Everything about you. The way you’re passionate about your work, the way you remember the little things I tell you, I mean I could write a whole dissertation about you,” he concludes.

 

Junhui gently wipes a tear from Minghao’s face. He lets his hand linger, caressing Minghao’s cheek.

 

He leans in closer to Minghao. Their noses are touching, lips centimeters apart.

 

Minghao can’t wait any longer. He closes his eyes and presses his lips on Junhui’s, which are slightly chapped but warm and pillowy nonetheless.

 

Junhui takes pleasure in the way Minghao’s lips feel against his. He kisses back with fervor as his arms wrap around Minghao’s neck.

 

Minghao feels like he could melt right this very second. His hands travel down Junhui’s body, encircling his waist.

 

Junhui moves his mouth and begins to place light kisses along Minghao’s jawline. Minghao makes a small sound of delight as Junhui moves on to his neck.

 

“Hey, uh,” Junhui says as he lifts his head up, keeping his face close to Minghao. “We’re um, still outside.”

 

He raises his arm off Minghao to gesture around awkwardly. He turns back to look at him with a shy smile on his face.

 

“But you know, we could go upstairs to my place, like you know, if you want,” Junhui seduces, leaning in to kiss Minghao again.

 

Minghao nods eagerly. They break apart from their entanglement to grab Junhui’s luggage, wasting no time to make it up to the safe haven of Junhui’s apartment.

 

* * *

 

The two lay together in Junhui’s bed, wrapped up in the sheets.

 

Minghao should be sleeping, but he’s never felt more awake.

 

But what’s even better is this new sensation of his back against Junhui’s chest, with the feeling of Junhui’s arms wrapped around his waist.

 

He hums in delight as Junhui presses a kiss to Minghao’s disheveled hair.

 

“Was that alright?” Junhui mumbles sleepily. Minghao untangles himself from Junhui’s embrace and rolls himself over so they can lie face to face.

 

“It was awesome,” Minghao whispers as he leans in to kiss Junhui again, much sweeter this time in compared to the ones filled with ardor a couple of minutes ago.

 

Junhui smiles. He motions for Minghao to return to his original position wrapped in his arms, so he does.

 

“So, it seems like we’ve gone straight to the home run, haven’t we,” Minghao silently chuckles at his baseball metaphor.

 

He turns his head to look up at Junhui, whose eyes appear to be rolling to the back of his head.

 

Minghao reaches up to poke Junhui’s nose. “We haven't even been on a proper date yet,” he teases.

 

Junhui shifts his body slightly to check the date listed on his alarm clock. The time reads 1:30 am.

 

“Well, technically today is Saturday, so no work,” he notes. “That means you can take me out to a date?” Junhui says questioningly, raising an eyebrow.

 

Minghao lifts his head up to look at Junhui.

 

“Why me?” he pouts.

 

“You confessed first, it’s only proper I get treated to a nice date with you,” Junhui whines. “None of this would have happened if you didn’t”  
  
Fair point. They agree to go to a small cafe that Wonwoo had recommended to Minghao some time ago.

 

“Fine, I’ll treat you to a meal,” Minghao agrees reluctantly.

  
“Yay!” Junhui sings. “This is so exciting, we’re gonna go on a date!”

 

He jumps out of the bed and breaks out into what looks to Minghao like a sort of dorky victory dance.

 

Minghao tries to stifle a yawn. “Yay,” he grumbles. “But I really want to sleep, Jun.”

 

Junhui nods, and crawls back into bed. He feels his chest on Minghao’s back and he secures his position by wrapping an arm around Minghao. Junhui lets out a content hum.

 

“Goodnight,” he murmurs. “Xu Minghao, I love you.”

 

“I love you too, Wen Junhui,” a sleepy Minghao mumbles back.

 

And together, they drift away into a fulfilled slumber.

 

* * *

 

One month passes. Junhui and Minghao are officially boyfriend and boyfriend, but no one has mentioned it to the office yet.

 

That is, until Wonwoo does.

 

It’s Mingyu’s first day as the company’s photographer.

 

Junhui was doing his morning rounds, and wanted to know was if Wonwoo had met the newest employee.

 

“Oh yeah, Mingyu, I met him, he’s cool,” Wonwoo says, a sly smile spreading across his face.

 

Junhui is startled; he’s never seen such an expression on Wonwoo before.

 

“And I learned that he helped you and Minghao get together,” he continues casually, as if he had just delivered news about today’s weather.

 

Junhui gulps.

 

Minghao told him on their first date that he sought out tips for confessing, but he didn’t realize that Minghao got pointers from an actual person.

 

A _person_ who talks to other _people,_ about _things_.

 

 _Things_ that are unexpectedly announced to a whole office floor.

 

Or at least to those in earshot.

 

Unfortunately for Junhui, one of those in earshot is Boo Seungkwan.

 

“ _I KNEW IT!_ ” Seungkwan’s voice shrills. Junhui wants to leave, immediately.

 

Once he bids farewell to Wonwoo and Seungkwan, he sprints to Minghao’s office. Upon entering, he slams the door behind him.

 

Minghao looks up at Junhui. He can read his panicked expression right away.

 

“Cat’s out of the bag?” he asks nonchalantly, typing something on his laptop.

 

Junhui sighs.

 

“Cat’s out of the bag,” he repeats. He pulls out a chair in front of Minghao’s desk and explains the incident that had just taken place.

 

“They were all gonna find out eventually,” Minghao says reassuringly, looking up from his laptop to pat Junhui’s cheek.

 

Junhui slumps in his chair. “I mean, I guess, but I wanted it to be some kind of casual announcement on our part, like we could introduce each other as our boyfriend or whatever to the co workers when we're ready,” he admits.

 

“God Junhui, you’re such a _nerd_ ,” Minghao says. “At least I don’t have to worry about discreetly calling you the nicknames now!”

 

Junhui scrunches his nose.

 

Minghao had a thing for terms of endearment. They were cute, and Junhui didn’t mind them, but it made his face flush when Minghao called him “honey,” or “darling,” out of fear that other people would hear and he would die of embarrassment.

 

But Minghao’s right. Now that people know, there’s no stopping him now.

 

He’s invincible now that everyone knows Minghao is his and he is Minghao’s.

 

It’s official.

 

Junhui smiles. “You make a good point, my _dearest beloved_ ,” he sneers.

 

Minghao tries to suppress a laugh. God, his boyfriend was a dork.

 

“Oh!” Minghao pipes up, remembering something.. “Look at what I did!” He flips the frame on his desk around to show Junhui.

 

It’s now occupied with a photo of them together that Junhui had took on their first date.

 

In the photo, Junhui’s mostly in the center, but Minghao is on the right with his head rested on Junhui’s shoulder.

 

It wasn’t the highest quality picture, since they were both in a fit of giggles when they took it and it was sort of blurred, but Junhui found it somewhat pleasing that he chose that one above all the others.

 

This picture just captured _them_ so effortlessly. Junhui grins, fondling the photo frame in his hands.

 

“I approve,” he states, returning it to its original spot on the desk.

 

Minghao smiles. “I figured you would,” he says.

 

Enough time passes that Junhui figures he has to return to his own office. He gets up out of his chair and leans in to quickly peck a kiss Minghao’s cheek.

 

“See you after work, Hao!” he calls as he leaves the office.

 

He stops at the doorstep and does a quick glance outside to check if anyone is around before leaning his head back in.

 

“I love you,” he says to Minghao, in a hushed voice.

 

Minghao smiles.

 

“I love you too,” he returns.

  


**Author's Note:**

> i lov them my sons
> 
> find me on AFF under the same username!! :D


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